As title says it all, what is your opinion: is collecting vintage and obsolete thinkpads (and/or any computers for that matter), hobby, some kind of mental disorder or little bit of both?
If you ask me, I think it is a little bit of both
And there is no known cure from that... My signature is a proof

i had the ThinkPad collecting fever before, i don't know why i am attracted to ThinkPad in particular (i collected Apple laptops and Phone/iPads for a while too). I guess i am attracted to ThinkPad, because there is a clear design story behind each machine, another reason why i liked ThinkPad is the great keyboard action.

I am no longer collecting ThinkPad like i use to, i am more 'sane' now and only buy the one that i need. This year i only got the ThinkPad W550s, which is a brilliant machine. But i really want the ThinkPad Retro.

lead_org wrote:I am no longer collecting ThinkPad like i use to, i am more 'sane' now and only buy the one that i need. This year i only got the ThinkPad W550s, which is a brilliant machine. But i really want the ThinkPad Retro.

I do recall photos of a ThinkBurger lol. I believe that was taken when you were in the clutches of insanity

All in all I think collecting Thinkpads is a hobby that's friendlier to the wallet than many other hobbies. For instance enthusiast cars and car tuning. Some of my friends burn $100K on cars, while others build $20K engines in normal cars and take them to the track and sometimes blow them up. I used to have an enthusiast car too, and will probably buy one again in couple of years time when the house is done. Not a $100K car, though. Anyway, compared to this, I have spent less than $4000 on my collection of Thinkpads, and it takes a lot less space than a car. So I won't say it's such an expensive and space consuming hobby after all.

Buying a spare Thinkpad that you have admired but never owned I believe can become a "Gateway" addiction. Also there is a tendency I find to want more than one of that admired Thinkpad for backup spares.
They are not very expensive as Bjorn has pointed out but I believe you need to set some boundaries and keep in mind their affects on partners. Not only in space they consume but also in time they can consume.
But really there are a lot worse collectibles and hobbies.

Years ago I used to have closet full of PC junk. I threw it all in the trash. It felt so wonderful. So now it's my T410 and X61T (That I haven't booted in almost 6 months). I also have a Latitude D630 in active service as my backup machine.

About a year ago I started getting laptops from clients. I had to sell a lot of them because I had been down that path before. Never again. It's so nice just having 1 or 2 machines to give my attention to. The other positive is I have more money.

If you need a quick reference to the specs on older model systems, you could try a copy of the free app, LenovoLook. It is a search engine for Android devices and some older BlackBerry smart phones. To make it work you need at least ONE database, and there are some samples posted on http://www.pscfg.com/downloads.htm

Two of them contain really old, withdrawn systems. Check out their dates ! Both the app store site and the link above have some screen captures of the app in action.

Norway Pad wrote:All in all I think collecting Thinkpads is a hobby that's friendlier to the wallet than many other hobbies. For instance enthusiast cars and car tuning. Some of my friends burn $100K on cars, while others build $20K engines in normal cars and take them to the track and sometimes blow them up.

+1 If i could store more cars - i'd probably got some more Just in case
Many ThinkPads have come to me the same way (just in case). Some as a spares for my daylidrivers (60 - 61 series). Some for frankenpadding (T61 + tablets for IPS LCD), but after that they have been resurrected. Some for experiments (W500 with QC, T43 for T50). Some for getting new user experiences (tablets and X201 + X301 for transition from X61). Some for future use 410 (when T61 becomes really old). One (T20) of pity (got from recycle bin). And this was the real turn point when (pointless) collecting begun.
Old dream - rejuvenate feelings from OS/2, drive me to get 600E and 560X (but i have fighting long time for not collecting letterless Thinkpads;)... And after that i have got 2877 and installed it on T20
I think that i have everything i dreamed (701C? . RetroThinkPad? So yes my collection is over.

For me it is 100% hobby, with small practical accent (If any collecting can be treated as hobby of clear mind).

Buying a spare Thinkpad that you have admired but never owned I believe can become a "Gateway" addiction.

I was tempted to grab an X300 that had a broken screen just because. Thank heavens someone beat me to it.

Now I'm trying to grab a dead X60 to make use of a spare X61 board that's sleeping in my shelf. This one's for practical purposes though, as my youngest sister is complaining that her Asus EEE 1015 netbook is starting to give.

My goal is to have everyone in the family become Thinkpadders, and I'm halfway there.

Norway Pad wrote:All in all I think collecting Thinkpads is a hobby that's friendlier to the wallet than many other hobbies. For instance enthusiast cars and car tuning. Some of my friends burn $100K on cars, while others build $20K engines in normal cars and take them to the track and sometimes blow them up. I used to have an enthusiast car too, and will probably buy one again in couple of years time when the house is done. Not a $100K car, though. Anyway, compared to this, I have spent less than $4000 on my collection of Thinkpads, and it takes a lot less space than a car. So I won't say it's such an expensive and space consuming hobby after all.

that depends on whether you are collecting new ThinkPads or not, i have spent close to around 60,000 USD on ThinkPads so far.

I don't buy new Thinkpads so it is not much of a financial drain. I wouldn't say I'm collecting Thinkpads so much as keeping them because they are among the most rugged and practical laptops I've ever had. Nothing like being able to do a complete motherboard swap in an hour. No other Laptop I've worked on has hardware designed for easy maintenance and repair.

No need to compare them to cars, even compared to other areas of vintage computing, they are dirt cheap. Just see what Amiga 4000s and high end accelerators for them are selling for these days. My 060 A4000 is probably worth more than my car. Looking at recent eBay auctions, one stock bare bones A4000 goes for the price of 3-5 Transnotes which is about the hottest thing in vintage Thinkpads. In A31ps, an A4000 is worth around 7-9.

Currently using: A W500, a W520, two X201Ts, an X220T, an X61T, a 14" T60P, a 15" UXGA T60P, and a W701.
Currently idle: A spare W500, a spare X61T, a 14" T61, a 15" SXGA+ T60, a 14" T60, and my first Thinkpad, a 770X.

I can't think of another laptop brand that is easier to work on and has a ton of spares parts available plus they are cheap.

My basement is full of old computer I collect and work on (not just laptops). While individual machines didn't cost too much they did cost a few bucks when you add them all up. Still I got this stuff pretty cheaply for a hobby.

I was tempted to grab an X300 that had a broken screen just because. Thank heavens someone beat me to it.

Sorry brother, I am that evil guy
I put new screen in it and keep it for the collection.
Thinkpads I ACTUALLY use every day are:
T500 (web surfing, movies, light gaming, office)(T9900, 8Gigs, Ati, SSD, FHD IPS)
W520 (moderate gaming on weekends, some CAD, photoshop)(Quadro 2000M, 32Gigs, SLC SSD, MLC SSD, XT Hybrid HDD, FHD IPS Color calibrated)
X201Tablet (my to go thinkpad, stock configuration)
Palmtop PC 110 (2 of them, I admire them every day if this counts as USE and if they count as thinkpads )
My dream thinkpads are 710T (can not find it ANYWHERE) and W700DS/W701DS (still too expensive).

lead_org wrote:that depends on whether you are collecting new ThinkPads or not, i have spent close to around 60,000 USD on ThinkPads so far.

That's more than my previous enthusiast car cost. Wow..

The comparison to cars was done because that was the first thing that came to mind. I also have friends that blow a fortune on RC planes, guns, old tractors, home entertainment systems, to mention a few. So basically it's possible to spend a huge amount of money and time on almost any hobby if you put a lot into it. And apparently even Thinkpads if you buy brand new ones all the time.

I have to this day never bought a brand new Thinkpad, except from the Tablet2. Through my wife's job, we have access to the newest models all the time anyway. The most expensive ones I have bought would be a T60 and particularly a T43 which was a pretty new and decent computer at the time. They were bought purely for use, though, so I didn't count them in on the total of my collection. But even if I did, we still talk "only" $6000+. The only time I will buy a new Thinkpad is when (if) the RetroThinkpad comes out. If I really like it, I might even buy one for collection. But for that to happen it has to be good, really good.

I'm not so sure about that, unless the seller is from my country (Philippines).

In any case, I prefer an X301 over an X300 due to the slightly faster processor and much better battery life.

To be honest, the "Collecting bug" has tried to bite me whenever a good/rare Thinkpad model pops up in our local classified ads website, but the bug is slapped away by a heavy dose of "You don't have the money for that" or "You don't need it".

Just like now: there's an X200s L9400 with the 1440x900 screen that sells for less than $150. I can afford it, but I don't need it (already have an X220). I do acknowledge that I am interested--I'm a Thinkpadder after all.

I say hobby. I've been collecting mine since the late 90s, and my signature shows my current collection, although I have some duplicates (like 2 x 755CE, 2 x 360CE, etc).

**edit**

I just looked again at your signature. Since you have the venerable PC110, I'd definitely say both. Always wanted that, and the closest I got recently was a 510CS. I see you also have the 100 and 200LX. I used to have a 200LX about 15 years ago; great palmtop!